The plural of caducum; in anatomy, the portion of the uterus and placental tissues that are shed after childbirth; also called the decidua.
From Latin caduca (feminine plural of caducus, meaning 'falling'). Named because these tissues naturally fall away or are expelled after delivery.
Medieval physicians used this Latin term for afterbirth without fully understanding what it was—they knew it fell away, so they called it the 'falling thing'!
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